


Back to that long September

by Alyssa_Allyrion



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Nen, Angst, Drama, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-04
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-16 21:20:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29831067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alyssa_Allyrion/pseuds/Alyssa_Allyrion
Summary: Illumi Zoldyck is a third-year student at Hunter University, trying his hardest to balance his academic responsibilities and his duties to his family. Love has no place in his plans. Unfortunately for him, his classmate Hisoka Morow couldn't care less about Illumi's plans.
Relationships: Gon Freecs/Killua Zoldyck, Hisoka/Illumi Zoldyck, Kuroro Lucifer | Chrollo Lucifer/Illumi Zoldyck, Leorio Paladiknight/Cheadle Yorkshire, Machi/Pakunoda, Oito Hui Guo Rou/Kurapika
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28





	Back to that long September

**Author's Note:**

> So I was supposed to write something serious like part 2 to "Have" or chapter 4 to "Concealed", but then a conversation happened and, well, here we are. ~~Samantha, if you are reading this, it's all your fault~~

Illumi glanced at his phone screen and sighed – Killua still hadn’t responded to his messages. _Mother is going to be very upset._ Killua, Alluka and Kalluto were supposed to send him the results of their placements tests. Illumi had already forwarded to their mother Alluka’s and Kalluto’s results – both did exceptionally well on all their tests and got placed into honors classes in all their subjects – but Killua’s results were still missing. 

_He probably bombed the math test,_ Illumi thought, grimly. Math was never Killua’s strong suit. 

Illumi had little desire to deal with his sibling’s academic affairs – being a third years student at a university he had plenty other things to focus on – but he knew it was his duty to the family to do as his parents said. 

_If he does not respond in the next few hours, I will go see him,_ Illumi resolved, as he settled next to his apartment window with a cup of coffee. He knew it would not be hard - the school his younger siblings attended was affiliated with the Hunter University and was located just a few minutes away from campus. 

Illumi glanced at the clock – it was almost eight in the morning, which meant he needed to hurry. The day was beautiful and surprisingly warm for late August, making Illumi almost glad that his apartment was so far away from campus. _He could enjoy this walk in peace._

He had only just moved to this apartment building – until last spring Illumi lived in the dorms, as the university required all students to reside on campus during their first two years. Illumi fully expected to live in the dorm until graduation, but his parents insisted that as a Zoldyck he deserved much better – and got him an apartment in the most upscale building in the neighborhood, which happened to be quite far away from campus. 

“You must be so happy – you don’t have to live with…. _these_ anymore,” Illumi’s mother told him when he came back home for the summer.

He nodded, of course, but the truth was – he did not mind living in the dorm. Yes, it was nothing like the Zoldycks mansion he grew up in - the mattresses were probably stuffed with pebbles, water in the showers – perpetually cold, the walls - so thin that you could instantly learn much more about other people than you ever wanted to. And yet, Illumi had somehow gotten used to it to such an extent that he was almost sad to leave. _Still, he could not argue with his parents, so he did as he was told._

Illumi was used to it – doing things exactly as his parents told him. He was an economics and business double major and had hardly any interest in either subject – though his grades, of course, would never betray that. But his father expected him to join the family business, and insisted he study business and economics, so that was exactly what Illumi did. 

“I’m wondering,” he recalled Machi tell him once, as the two were sitting at their dorm’s table in the dining hall, “Is there a subject you do enjoy? Like if your parents were not making you study business and economics, what would you choose.”  
Illumi remembered shrugging in response. The question seemed silly – what good was it to dwell upon the hypotheticals when he knew that his answer did not matter. He would have chosen whatever his parents told him too. 

Illumi sighed – it’s been a while since he had spoken to Machi. Ever since last year, he could not help but feel that something was off whenever she interacted with him. 

He turned of the busy street into a small alleyway to avoid a crowd of nervous first year students. As he walked past the library, Illumi looked across the road at his old dorm. _Perhaps, I should visit Milluki._ Mulliki, Illumi’s other younger brother, had just started his first year at the university and was residing in the same dorm Illumi used to live in. 

Once he reached the natural sciences building, Illumi headed straight inside. Opening the door to the classroom, he could hardly suppress a sigh – it was clear that all the other students were first years. 

_Well, what did I expect?_ Illumi scolded himself as he walked in, _It is a first year class, after all._

The Hunter University insisted that all students must be academically well-rounded and, hence, had extensive core curriculum requirements. Illumi was not thrilled – he could think of better ways to spend his time than studying art history and physics and sociology, when all he came here to learn was business and economics. Still, he had diligently completed all the core requirements during his first year – except for one. 

Somehow, the fact that he also needed to take a bio class slipped through the cracks. Luckily, he caught his oversight just in time – all of the core requirements needed to be completed before the student’s final year. Still, Illumi felt rather annoyed – both by his own carelessness and the fact that biology stuck out like a sore thumb on his schedule full of economics and business classes. _But, it seemed, he had little choice. <.em>_

_Illumi glanced around the class again. _Why are these first years so loud? He noticed that most seats towards the middle and the back of the room were taken. With a shrug, he walked to the seat in the middle of the front row.__

__“Leorio, calm down!” Illumi heard someone say as he was making his way to his seat._ _

__“No! First, I cannot get any sleep because he insisted he needed to talk on the phone, and now he takes my things without asking!”_ _

__“Just talk to him after class… Oh, hi, Illumi.”_ _

__Illumi looked over to the person who greeted him. It took a moment before he’d recognized them. _Of course, Killua’s friends, Kurapika and Leorio._ He had completely forgotten that they had just started the university this year. _ _

__It was only the first week of classes and Kurapika looked like he hadn’t slept in months – but then again, from what Illumi could remember, he always looked like that._ _

__“Hello,” he said flatly._ _

__“Aren’t you a third year?” Leorio replied, “And this is a first-year class.”_ _

__Illumi shrugged, and without saying anything else, sat down. He had very little interest in explaining to Killua’s friends why he was in that class. Mercifully, it did not seem like they were very interested in talking to him either._ _

__The lesson passed by in a blink of an eye, and next thing Illumi knew he, together with other students in his class, was walking over to biology lab._ _

__“Alright, take your seats quickly,” Cheadle Yorkshire, a short, green-haired, teaching assistant said, “Two people per station. Whoever you are sitting with is going to be your lab partner for this course.”_ _

__Illumi did not like working with other people – it always felt like no one else could do a good enough job, and that he had to always be the one fixing someone else’s errors – so when he noticed an empty station, he immediately headed there, hoping and praying that no one would seat next to him._ _

__It seemed his pleas were answered because, when everyone settled down, Illumi was sitting all by himself. _Perfect,_ he thought. _ _

__“Let’s get right to it,” Cheadle said, walking to the front of the class, “We’ve got a lot to cover.”_ _

__Before she had a chance to begin, Illumi heard the door swing open and a familiar voice said, “I’m sorry I’m late.”_ _

__Illumi turned around – in the doorway stood Hisoka Morow and by the shameless smirk on his face it was clear that he wasn’t the least bit sorry. His pink and purple hair looked tousled, as if he had just rolled out of bed, and there were smudges of make up on his face._ _

__“That’s alright, please take a seat,” Cheadle said._ _

__Hisoka looked around the room. Illumi sighed – he knew that the only empty space in the class was next to him. Hisoka noticed it too._ _

__“Oh, hi, Illu,” Hisoka said with a smirk, plopping down on the seat next to him, “What a coincidence.”_ _

__Illumi shook his head – he knew he should not be surprised to see Hisoka here. Hisoka was also a third-year student, but, knowing him, he had probably purposefully put off the subjects he was not interested in until the very last minute.  
“I must say, I’m a little surprised to see you here,” Hisoka whispered, distracting Illumi from what Cheadle was saying, “I always thought someone like you would have their core requirements done in the first year.”_ _

__Illumi had to suppress the urge to push Hisoka of the char._ _

__“Be quiet,” he hissed, “You’ve already missed the lecture.”_ _

__“Seeing as you are now my lab partner, I don’t think that’s a big problem,” Hisoka chuckled, “I’m sure we’ll be spending many fun hours together.”_ _

__Illumi sighed and tried focusing on what Cheadle was saying. Sometimes he wondered how Hisoka made it to the Hunter University at all with the work ethic that he had. Apparently, however, when it came to visual and performance arts, Hisoka was nothing short of a genius – or so Illumi had been told by those who’d seen his work. Illumi himself had no time or desire to attend the university’s theater performances or art exhibits._ _

__“If you take a look at page seven of your books,” Illumi heard Cheadle say, “You can see the table I’m referring to.”_ _

__Illumi quickly flipped through the pages of his textbook, but, to his surprise, there was no table on page seven. He looked up at the slides, confused._ _

__“Looks like you’ve got the wrong book,” Hisoka whispered, as he leaned closer to Illumi, “Didn’t you see the email? They switched the textbook a few weeks back.”_ _

__Illumi shook his head – he could not remember seeing any email. But with what was going on at their house the past summer, it was little wonder that he was distracted._ _

__“I haven’t seen it,” he said flatly._ _

__“Well, you are in luck – I’m feeling generous today, so we can share,” Hisoka smiled._ _

__“Thanks,” Illumi replied, making a mental note to check online for the required textbook._ _

__Cheadle continued explaining the first lab that they were going to do, and Illumi did his best to take as detailed notes as possible. _No more distractions,_ he told himself firmly. Illumi was successful in his resolution, until towards the end of the class, when he accidentally dropped one of his highlighters. _ _

__As he reached under the desk to get it, he noticed that Hisoka was not taking notes. Instead, he was drawing something…completely obscene. Illumi felt color rise in his cheeks._ _

__“What the hell are you doing?” he whispered._ _

__“Huh?” Hisoka looked up from the drawing momentarily, amusement clear in his eyes, “Ah, this? Do you like it?”_ _

__Illumi did not dignify his question with an answer. Sure, the quality of drawing was exceptional, but the subject matter…_ _

__“It’s for my patrons,” Hisoka continued explaining, “I like to upload something extra spicy on Tuesdays.”_ _

__Illumi had no idea who Hisoka’s “patrons” were and where he uploaded the pictures to, and he did not care. He did care about his grades, however._ _

__“You better not mess up the next lab, because you had to draw pervy pictures instead of taking notes,” Illumi replied, turning back to his own notes._ _

__“Oh, I’ll be just fine – I have you as a partner, after all,” Hisoka laughed._ _

__Once they received assignments for the next lab at the end of class, it became clear that Illumi needed the required textbook immediately._ _

__“If you can’t get one in time, I’m willing to share out of class too,” Hisoka offered him, “We both have busy schedules, but _I’m sure we can work something out._ ”_ _

__“I think I’ll be just fine,” Illumi replied flatly._ _

__“Well, my offer still stands,” Hisoka smirked at him as he picked up his bookbag, “See you soon.”_ _

__To Illumi’s anguish, getting the textbook turned out to be much more difficult than he anticipated. When he checked online, he saw that they were out of stock and that the soonest arrival time was almost a month away. The search of the university’s library website also did not yield any results – somehow, this was the one textbook they did not have._ _

__Illumi’s last hope was the campus bookstore. He rarely went, preferring to order his books online, but now he was out of options. As Illumi made his way to the back of the bookstore, where all the textbooks were located, he heard a familiar voice._ _

__“Illumi!”_ _

__Illumi turned to the right and saw Chrollo working the book information counter. Chrollo was also a third-year student who Illumi first met when they lived in the same dorm._ _

__“Hi Chrollo,” Illumi said, walking over. _Maybe he could help me.__ _

__“How have you been?” Chrollo asked, smiling at Illumi, “We haven’t spoken in a while.”_ _

__“Sorry,” Illumi replied, “It was a very busy summer for me with all the internships and travel. How was yours?”_ _

__“It was a lot of fun,” Chrollo said, “Machi, Paku, Phinks and I were here all summer, exploring the city.”_ _

__Illumi nodded, not sure what else to say._ _

__“Can I help you with anything?” Chrollo asked then._ _

__“Actually yes, I’m looking for this textbook,” Illumi handed Chrollo his phone, “It’s for my biology class.”_ _

__“I thought you were already done with the core classes,” Chrollo looked at him, surprised._ _

__“So did I,” Illumi said flatly._ _

__“We’ve had it earlier, but it’s all sold out now,” Chrollo said, after checking the computer, “You could order it through the bookstore – but it will take at least a few weeks to arrive.”_ _

__Illumi could barely suppress a sigh – he really did not want to deal with borrowing the textbook from Hisoka, but it seemed like he had little choice._ _

__“Thank you anyways,” Illumi said and was about to walk away when Chrollo stopped him._ _

__“Listen,” Chrollo said, looking at Illumi with a hopeful expression, “The CSA is having a game night this Friday…And I understand that you don’t really believe, but I do know that you like board games. So I was thinking maybe you could stop by so we could catch up?”_ _

__Illumi leaned his head to the side, pondering. _He did like board games._ But with the amount of assignments he’d probably have to do over the weekend, Illumi could not promise anything. _ _

__“I can’t promise anything,” Illumi said then, “But I’ll try.”_ _

__As soon as Illumi was outside the bookstore, he texted Hisoka._ _

__“Looks like I will need to borrow your textbook after all,” he texted Hisoka, “What time can you meet?”_ _

__“I figured you were just playing hard to get,” read Hisoka’s smug reply, “But don’t worry, it looks good on you. How about tomorrow night at eleven? My dorm room.”_ _

__Illumi scoffed. _Right, like that’s going to happen.__ _

__“7 PM in the library,” he texted back.  
“Illu, did you forget that I am doing _you_ a favor?” Hisoka answered quickly, “But you are in luck today, and I’m feeling generous, so I’ll meet you halfway. Nine in the evening in my room?”_ _

__Illumi took a deep breath._ _

__“Fine,” he texted._ _

__“Excellent – I’m looking forward to seeing you.”_ _

__***_ _

__Machi was about to leave the storage room to rejoin Chrollo at the book information counter, when she saw Chrollo standing there talking to Illumi. She did not mean to listen in on their conversation, but it was inevitable._ _

__“The CSA is having a game night on Friday,” she heard Chrollo say, “Maybe you could stop by so we can catch up? I know you like board games.”_ _

__With a sigh, Machi pulled out her phone._ _

__“Paku, Chrollo’s doing it again,” she texted Pakunoda, “I thought he was over it.”_ _

__“I guess not,” Pakunoda replied._ _

__“I don’t get it – Illumi _never_ gives him the time of the day. What is he thinking? Is he trying to get hurt?”_ _

__“Feelings make us act in strange ways,” Pakunoda noted wisely._ _

__Machi shook her head. _This has to stop.__ _

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: 
> 
> I mention this in text, but just for convenience: 
> 
> \- Illumi, Hisoka and Chrollo are all third year university students. Illumi studies business and economics, Hisoka studies visual and performing arts, and Chrollo studies religion and creative wrirting. 
> 
> \- Kurapika and Leorio are in their first yet. Leorio is pre med, Kurapika is undecided. 
> 
> \- Gon and Killua are sophomores in high school. 
> 
> \- CSA stands for Cristian student association. 
> 
> ~~\- Hisoka has Patreon where he posts inappropriate drawings. It's very successful.~~
> 
> \- I promise, I'll try my best to finish part 2 of "Have" tomorrow. Husband dearest is coming back from his trip on Friday, so if I don't have it done before then it'll probably be delayed till Monday because I'll have no peace to write.


End file.
